Wednesday, June 14, 2006

The Simpson's and Fermat's Last Theorem

Since I'm a big Simpson's fan, I love this. Here's a recent article written about the mathematics of the Simpson's:Apparently, the Simpson's TV show has included a throw away joke on Fermat's Last Theorem.

Basically, enter the following numbers into any standard calculator:

1782^12

1841^12

1922^12

And you will find that according to a standard calculator:

178212 + 184112 = 192212

What's up?

Well, the answer comes down to a calculator's rounding error since these numbers are too large for the calculator. After all, an even number + odd number = odd number and yet in this equation, an even number + odd number = even number.

Forget about this 500 page long and this and that.high school level and very short proofs are with us.I must tell you that if you point out the place where the parity upset,it may shorten the proof a lot.Pl. note that the two experts who read the proof have not noticed the error what you say.I will check and correct it soon.Thank you again for your comment.